Windsor senior up for prestigious Boettcher Scholarship

Feb. 6, 2013

Hannah West, a senior at Windsor High School, stands in her AP Chemistry classroom on Tuesday afternoon. West is a finalist for the Boettcher Scholarship, a prestigious, merit-based award that provides what is essentially a full-ride to any 4-year institution in Colorado. / Erin Udell/Beacon

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Not many 17 year olds can say they’ve never earned a grade lower than an A.

Even fewer can manage that perfect report card on top of an already-packed schedule of athletics, student council duties and after school jobs.

But Hannah West, a senior at Windsor High School and recent Boettcher Scholarship finalist, does it all, while remaining sweet and down-to-earth about her accomplishments.

West said she found out about moving up to the final round of the scholarship competition on Friday. About a week or two after her interview in early March, she’ll get word of whether or not one of the prestigious, merit-based scholarships — which essentially gives its recipients a full-ride to any 4-year Colorado institution — will be hers.

“It felt really amazing and I wanted to cry, but I was with a lot of people so I held it in,” West said, laughing about when she heard she’d be moving up to the final round. “But it was a surprise and right now, I’d say it’s my biggest accomplishment just because I’ve already done so much work to get me here and now it’s kind of out of my control.”

“That freaks me out,” she added. “But it’s also sort of thrilling to know that everything I’ve done is going to pay off.”

Angie Rizzuto, the counseling department chair at WHS and West’s counselor, said every one at the school is very proud of West. Rizzuto added that Abigail Zimmerman, another WHS student, and West both made it to the semi-finals together before West became one of the 70 students selected for the final round.

“Those girls represent what’s right in the world,” Rizzuto said, of West and Zimmerman. “They represent Windsor very very well. They’re just the epitome of what’s good and right with students. We (at WHS) are extremely proud.”

According to Rizzuto, if West wins one of the 40 scholarships the program offers, she’ll be the school’s first Boettcher scholar in 15 years, with the last being Scott Wilkinson in 1998.

More recently, in 2007, WHS student Darby Emerson made it to the same round West is at now.

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“Hannah is very well rounded,” Rizzuto said. “She’s not only that student who is very academically inclined. She is also a student who is very activity driven. She has engrained herself in the culture of Windsor High School.”

West grew up in Windsor with two older brothers and her parents, Randy and Ann. She went to Skyview Elementary School and Windsor Middle School before starting at WHS in 2009. Throughout high school, she’s been part of the cross country, basketball and tennis teams. And, in her free time, she coaches tennis and works weekends at Dairy Queen and The House of Windsor.

According to Rizzuto, it wasn’t just Hannah’s grades, interest in athletics and extracurricular activities that set her apart from other scholarship applicants.

“I think there are those pieces,” Rizzuto said of West’s grades and extra-curricular activities, “but the reality of it is that there’s hundreds of Hannahs across Colorado that are well-rounded.”

“The fact is that Hannah has been extremely successful in the science field, winning science fairs, presenting at international competitions,” Rizzuto added. “Her contribution to the science field is pretty spectacular for her age.”

West is one of about 70 Colorado students vying for the 40 scholarship spots. If she wins one, she said her next move will be studying biology at either Colorado State University or the University of Denver.

In the long-run, she’s thinking about going to grad school and possibly working for a biotechnology company.

“We are absolutely very proud, very excited, truthfully in shock and still get goosebumps when we think about it,” said Hannah’s mom, Ann West.

Ann West said she and her husband found out about the finals on the same day Hannah did.

“She’s a very good student. She works,” Ann West said. “She works for her grades and everything she does and she’s always kind of pushed herself out of her comfort zone.”

“It wasn’t always easy, but she never gives up and always keeps her focus,” she added. “We’re just proud.”